The Merrell surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 8,809 people carried this name — #4,032 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 33,400 people counted. That is up 5% from 8,414 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Merrell surname

Variant of Muriel.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Merrell» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a baptismal name, from a given name: ‘the son of Muriel’.

His entry covers Merrall, Merrell and Merrill.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 528 · public domain.

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Merrell was found among the farmers of Worcestershire: 18 in every 10,000.

Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Worcestershire 18

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

In 1790, Merrell was counted together with Merrill: 375 families in all.

Each family is counted by its head. About 2,245 people lived in those households, 6 to a family on average. The census counted these spellings together: Merrill, Merell, Meril, Merill, Merills, Merrel, Merrell, Merrells, Merrels, Merril, Merrille, Merrills, Merrils. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

New Hampshire 98
Maine 81
Massachusetts 77
Connecticut 62
New York 22
North Carolina 13
Vermont 11
Maryland 7
Rhode Island 1
Pennsylvania 1
Virginia 1
South Carolina 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 253 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Merrell in American newspapers,
1860.

Newspaper page from Raftsman's Journal carrying the name Merrell
Raftsman's Journal 1860-05-16
Newspaper page from Raftsman's Journal carrying the name Merrell
Raftsman's Journal 1860-05-02
Newspaper page from Raftsman's Journal carrying the name Merrell
Raftsman's Journal 1860-05-30

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 29,847 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Merrell in Australian newspapers,
1840s–1980s.

2,470 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Merrell. The most, 771, date from the 1950s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Queensland, at 3.0 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Queensland 1,570
Victoria 408
New South Wales 323
Western Australia 82
South Australia 51
Tasmania 31
ACT (Canberra) 3

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Merrell.

Who carried it

People named Merrell,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Stanley W. Merrell
    Stanley W. Merrell 1876–1921 · judge
  • George R. Merrell
    George R. Merrell 1898–1962 · diplomat
  • Nellie Dryden Merrell 1864–1940 · writer
  • Clarence Fuson Merrell 1887–1954 · writer
  • Helen Lynd 1896–1982 · actor
  • Margaret Merrell 1900–1995 · biostatistician

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Merrell,
in the records of 5 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States650 records

650 records of the Merrell name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 295
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 179
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 87
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 43
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 32
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 8
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 5
  • Sacramento County historic burials 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Graham F. Merrell

    Born 1916 in North Carolina. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Bragg; farm hand. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 2001, buried at Mount Hope Baptist Cemetery, Hendersonville, North Carolina.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Steven Dee Merrell

    Born 1950; from Pocatello, Idaho. U.S. Marine Corps, assaultman; killed in action 1970 in Thua Thien, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Hannah Merrell

    Arrived at New York in 1873 aboard the Parthia from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 55; matron. From England.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 650 records for Merrell in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia61 records

61 records of the Merrell name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 21
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 18
  • Tasmanian Names Index 10
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 7
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 4
  • State Library of Western Australia indexes 1
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Mathew Merrell

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Sir William Bensley, arriving 1818.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record John Merrell

    Arrived in Victoria in 1857 aboard the Roxburgh Castle, aged 24; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Mary Merrell

    Died 1819 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 21.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 61 records for Merrell in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Canada7 records

7 records of the Merrell name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 3
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 2
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 1
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Clement Robert Merrell

    Buried in 1973 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Arthur Middleton Merrell

    Died 1939 in Sheffield Mills, Kings, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  3. A Canadian First World War grave register card for a soldier who died of wounds in 1917
    Example: Canadian war grave register, 1917
    War record George Clark Merrell

    Died in service in 1918.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.

Showing 3 of 7 records for Merrell in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Canadian First World War circumstances-of-death register (scan by Scottgraham87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0).

United Kingdom5 records

5 records of the Merrell name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 4
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 1
  1. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record A. Merrell

    Machine Gun Corps. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record O. G. Merrell

    Gloucestershire Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record F. Merrell

    Bombardier, Worcestershire Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 5 records for Merrell in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Netherlands2 records

2 records of the Merrell name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 1
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 1
  1. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register Ralph Rees Merrell

    In the population register of Meppel; born 1902.

    Open Archives, Drents Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Fredericus Merrell

    Baptised in 1647 in Utrecht.

    Open Archives, Het Utrechts Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Merrell.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Merrell is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

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